The present invention relates to multi-hulled boats, and more specifically to multi-hulled boats having a variable width and folding cabin to facilitate trailering. In another aspect of the invention, a telescoping mast is provided for a sail driven version of the boat.
Multi-hulled boats have many characteristics that make them desirable for recreational boaters. As a general rule, they tend to have a wide beam which provides significantly more deck and cabin space than similar length traditional monohull boats. The typically long and slender hulls of a multi-hulled boat are more easily driven through the water making multi-hulled boats generally faster and more economical to operate. In sailing applications, the wide beam typically eliminates the need for a heavy keel, again improving speed and economy of operation. The wide beam also provides a very stable platform. Heel angles are substantially reduced making sailing much more comfortable for recreational sailors. However, in many cases, the extended beam gives the multi-hulled vessel the disadvantage of being too wide for convenient trailering and transportation by road.
To overcome this problem, especially in trimarans, many designs have been proposed that contemplate folding or otherwise decoupling the floats from the central hall in order to permit the vessel to reduce its width for trailering. For Example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,166 describes a trimaran having a pair of outrigger style retractable floats that are arranged so that the float connection assembly can be pivoted with respect to the main hull. While the described pivoting arrangement has been commercially successful, the nature of the pivot structure necessarily limits the size of the structures that can be supported on the outer floats. For example, in the described embodiment, the cabin is limited to the central hull while the floats are effectively limited to serve as storage compartments. Similar drawbacks are encountered in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,457,248 and 4,223,621, which disclose trimaran vessels having foldable outrigger style floats.
In contrast, one of the advantages of catamarans and other non-trailerable trimarans is their potential for significantly increasing the available cabin space by constructing a cabin that extends at least partially between the hulls. Specifically, in many recreational cruising multi-hull boats, the cabins are designed to extend over the space between the hulls and the hulls are constructed to be large enough to provide useful cabin space. However, to date, it has proved to be quite difficult to provide a truly trailerable multi-hulled boat that has a large cabin which extends between the hulls. The present invention discloses an easily trailerable multi-hulled boat with hulls large enough to provide usable cabin space and an enclosed cabin extending between the hulls of the boat.
It is noted that there have been several variable width pontoon boats that have been designed with trailering in mind. However, the designs are generally not suitable for sailboats or vessels having cabins. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,978,536 discloses a pontoon boat that can be folded for land transport. However, the design contemplates securing a trailer or camper to the pontoon boat for cabin space. The camper must then be detached prior to trailering the pontoon boat. Such detachable campers are wholly unsuited for sailing vessels, along with being time consuming during launching and trailering of the vessel. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,829,926 and 4,337,543 also discloses boats that can be folded for land transport, however, they do not provide for any enclosed cabin space.
In order to trailer a sailing vessel, it is imperative that the mast and sail be broken down in order to meet vehicle height restrictions. This is most often done by detaching the mast from its base and lashing it to the vessel. However, this process, along with the remounting of the mast at launching, is a time consuming and labor intensive task. Often, rigging must be detached to break down the mast and readjusted each time the mast is remounted. This makes removal of the mast undesirable.
Alternatively, some masts have been pivotally mounted so that the mast may be lowered for trailering. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,655,154 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,718,370 describe collapsible mast assemblies that are arranged so that the mast can be pivoted with respect to the boat and lowered into a horizontal position. Although the described arrangements assist in the lowering of the mast, the sails must still be lowered and dismounted along with dismounting at least some of the rigging. This again is labor intensive and time consuming both when launching and trailering the vessel. The present invention includes a telescoping mast and sail system which eliminates the need to dismount the sails, rigging, and mast, significantly reducing the time and labor required for launching and trailering the boat.